RainStorm Consulting programmer Jeremy Knope honored as Maine's Technology Innovator of the Year

RainStorm Consulting is pleased to announce that web programmer Jeremy Knope has received the prestigious Technology Innovator of the Year award at TechMaine's 2008 Technology Awards Gala, held on May 20th in Portland.

As one of three nominees for the award, Jeremy earned the honor for his efforts as co-creator and lead programmer of SiteTurbine, RainStorm's custom suite of web-based applications. SiteTurbine modules for news, email marketing, photo galleries, and e-commerce power high-profile academic and business websites in Maine and 20 other states. Jeremy was also acknowledged for his contributions to the Mac software development community as well as his work with open-source server architecture.

"We're proud to have an innovator like Jeremy on the RainStorm team. Jeremy's continued focus on making the next big idea a reality for RainStorm and our clients has set him apart for many years. It's great to see Jeremy getting the recognition he deserves for his hard work," said Brian Rahill, President of RainStorm Consulting.

Posted by Brian Rahill on May 29th 2008 | Read more in: Company news

RainStorm Consulting programmers earn highest industry certification

RainStorm Consulting is pleased to announce that its staff of programmers, Jeremy Knope and Matt James, have each earned the title of Zend Certified Engineer, currently the industry's highest certification for PHP programmers worldwide.

With their PHP 5 certification, Jeremy and Matt join an elite ranks which includes only two other programmers from the entire state of Maine, and just a small fraction of the tens of thousands of active PHP developers worldwide.

Jeremy Knope and Matt James (L-R)

"Congratulations to both Jeremy and Matt for this achievement," said Brian Rahill, president of RainStorm Consulting. "We are proud of Jeremy and Matt for earning this honor, and proud of the message it sends about our commitment to excellence here at RainStorm."

PHP is the world's most widely-used open-source web development language, powering millions of websites across hundreds of thousands of companies and organizations worldwide. As awarded by Zend, the PHP company, the certification ensures that both Jeremy and Matt meet and exceed the highest standards in development knowledge, practices, and experience in their field. Jeremy Knope previously earned the same certification for an earlier version of PHP.

Jeremy Knope, 27, is a Bangor resident and has been employed with RainStorm Consulting since January 2005. Originally from Vermont, he holds a degree in New Media from the University of Maine. Jeremy is co-creator and lead developer of SiteTurbine, RainStorm's own custom suite of website tools. Jeremy was recently named Maine's Technology Innovator of the Year at the 2008 Technology Awards Gala sponsored by TechMaine (formerly MESDA).

Matt James, 25, of Bangor has been employed with RainStorm Consulting since November 2007. A 2005 graduate of the University of Maine with a degree in New Media, he previously worked for a web development firm prior to joining RainStorm Consulting. An expert in usability and interface development, Matt is also a developer and active participant in the Mac software development community.

Posted by Brian Rahill on May 29th 2008 | Read more in: Company news